Modulating the release of vascular endothelial growth factor by negative-voltage emulsion electrospinning for improved vascular regeneration

Abstract Electrospun nanofibrous scaffolds providing local delivery of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) have distinctive advantages for vascular tissue engineering. However, more than 90% of VEGF were normally released from scaffolds formed by conventional positive-voltage emulsion electrospinning (PVEES) within the initial 3 days. VEGF molecules bear positive charge. In this investigation, emulsion electrospinning using power supplies of different polarities was studied for producing scaffolds bearing specific electric charge. VEGF-containing poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) scaffolds with initial potential of −87 and −202 V were formed by negative-voltage emulsion electrospinning (NVEES) at −10 and −20 kV, respectively, which enabled steady and sustained release up to 18 days, exhibiting effective modulation for VEGF release. Compared to VEGF-containing scaffolds formed by PVEES, NVEES-formed scaffolds showed superior performance in promoting endothelial cell functions.